Handelsbanken Fonder AB Raises Holdings in Allegion PLC (NYSE:ALLE)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its position in shares of Allegion PLC (NYSE:ALLE - Free Report) by 30.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 31,000 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after buying an additional 7,200 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB's holdings in Allegion were worth $4,044,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ALLE. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI purchased a new stake in shares of Allegion during the 4th quarter worth about $116,484,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Allegion in the 4th quarter valued at $108,058,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Allegion in the 4th quarter valued at $65,175,000. Boston Partners boosted its stake in Allegion by 11.6% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,716,756 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $616,503,000 after purchasing an additional 488,390 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH boosted its stake in Allegion by 312.4% in the fourth quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 574,012 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $75,012,000 after purchasing an additional 434,820 shares in the last quarter. 92.21% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ALLE has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Allegion from $137.00 to $139.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Allegion from $144.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Allegion from $140.00 to $135.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Wall Street Zen lowered Allegion from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Allegion from $126.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Allegion presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $140.40.

Allegion Stock Performance

NYSE:ALLE traded up $0.09 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $136.19. The stock had a trading volume of 1,199,358 shares, compared to its average volume of 870,612. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 2.17. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $137.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $132.91. Allegion PLC has a 12-month low of $113.27 and a 12-month high of $156.10. The stock has a market cap of $11.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 1.02.

Allegion (NYSE:ALLE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $941.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $918.53 million. Allegion had a return on equity of 44.82% and a net margin of 16.28%. The business's revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.55 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Allegion PLC will post 7.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Allegion Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. Allegion's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.65%.

About Allegion

Allegion plc manufactures and sells mechanical and electronic security products and solutions worldwide. The company offers door controls and systems and exit devices; locks, locksets, portable locks, and key systems and services; electronic security products and access control systems; time, attendance, and workforce productivity systems; doors, accessories, and other.